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Badger meles meles feeding ecology in dry mediterranean environments of the southwest edge of its distribution range

Abstract:

The dietary preference of badgers Meles meles (Linnaeus, 1758) for earthworms and other food resources has been widely discussed. In the Mediterranean area, rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus, fruits (mainly olives Olea europaea) and arthropods are the most important foods. We describe badger dietary habits in a xeric Mediterranean area, comparing use and availability of olives and rabbits. Our results indicated that olives and rabbits are the predominant resources consumed, however we did not detect any evidence of specialisation when we compared consumption versus field availability. In the case of olives we found that their consumption is reduced when juvenile rabbits or figs Ficus carica are widely available, which is evidence against any specialisation in this resource. Figs appear to be a key food item for badgers; they were consumed in large amounts when available. Badgers in this xeric area can be viewed as generalist or facultative specialists, using the most profitable resource when available but shifting its preferences to other less profitable food resources when availability of other primary food resource are reduced. Our results also indicated the high suitability of some human agricultural uses (eg fruit orchards) for this species, especially in the otherwise harsh Mediterranean environments.